Witness: Aaron Hernandez Became Agitated While At Nightclub

FALL RIVER, Mass. — A Revere woman who met Aaron Hernandez at a Boston club two nights before the Odin Lloyd killing testified Thursday that the former New England Patriots tight end made advances on her — acting pleasant and charming at first, but then aggressive and agitated when she saw him later in the night.

Bristol County prosecutors highlighted the shift in behavior to support their assertion that Hernandez, 25, killed Lloyd after becoming angry with him during a June 2013 visit to Rumor nightclub. They say that Hernandez was upset when the men left the club in the early-morning hours of Saturday, June 15, 2013, because he felt disrespected by Lloyd.

According to the state's version, Lloyd was shot to death 48 hours later.

Bristol County Assistant District Attorney William McCauley asked the witness, Kasey Arma, if "something changed" between the first and second time she interacted with Hernandez at Rumor that night.

"His whole demeanor," Arma replied. She said that the second time she saw Hernandez, "he was very different, very on edge, aggressive, kind of arrogant."

Arma is the second woman to testify that the former NFL tight end made sexual advances to her that night. Hernandez is engaged to Shayanna Jenkins, his high school sweetheart from Bristol, Conn., and the mother of his 2-year-old daughter.

Arma said that she first noticed Hernandez at the club when he tapped her on the hip to get her attention.

Several minutes later, she said, "I was standing maybe 5 feet from him with my girlfriends dancing … my girlfriends were like, 'He's staring you down.'"

At the urging of her friends, Arma said she went over to Hernandez, introduced herself, and asked him why he was standing by himself. She said she asked Hernandez his name and he responded: "Do you not know who I am?"

The former Patriots tight end then told the woman that his name was "Rock."

FALL RIVER, Mass. — A witness who testified at the murder trial of Aaron Hernandez Tuesday gave a chilling description of the defendant's demeanor two nights before the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd, describing his mouth in a "grunt" and his eyes "beaming directly" at Lloyd – who was standing a few...

(JENNY WILSON)

"He told me I looked good and he asked me if I could dance with him. I told him that I don't dance with guys in the club — I just come to have a good time with my girlfriends," Arma said. She eventually relented and agreed to dance with Hernandez.

"During this time, what was his demeanor?" asked McCauley.

"He was pretty pleasant, kind of charming, and we just danced," Arma said.

But the next time she saw Hernandez, Arma said, "I was back with my girlfriends dancing and then he came over and abruptly grabbed me by my arm."

"And what was his demeanor at that time?" McCauley asked.

"Very aggressive," Arma said. She testified that Hernandez led her across the club, leaned against a wall and told her to dance.

"He said, 'Show me what you can do with that thing,' referring to my back end," Arma said. Bristol County Superior Court Judge E. Susan Garsh ordered jurors to ignore that statement.

"If you could just tell us how his behavior seemed different than before," McCauley said.

"He just seemed agitated, on edge," Arma replied. She said Hernandez suggested that they leave the club and go to the W Hotel, which is nearby, because she would not go along with the way he was trying to dance with her.

Prosecutors have called several witnesses to testify about Hernandez's abnormal behavior at Rumor two days before Lloyd's death. Defense attorneys have countered those accounts with a suggestion that Hernandez's agitation was a result of fans approaching him and trying to take his picture. The 6-foot-2, 250-pound tight end had been an integral member of the Patriots offense in the 2012 season. Prior testimony has revealed that other patrons recognized him at Rumor, where he was considered a VIP guest.

"Approaching Aaron and getting him to dance was kind of an ego thing for you, wasn't it?" defense attorney Michael Fee asked. Arma admitted that it was.

The defense attorney played surveillance video of Hernandez and Arma dancing provocatively in the corner of the club against a wall.

"What kind of dance is that called?"

Arma said that she was not aware of a name.

Hernandez is accused in three murders in Massachusetts. He is standing trial in the Bristol County case for one count of first-degree murder and two illegal firearms counts.

After Arma's testimony, prosecutors jumped ahead to the day following Lloyd's 3 a.m. shooting on June 17, 2013.

Less than 12 hours after Lloyd's slaying, Hernandez was captured on surveillance footage lounging around his house, going for a swim in his backyard pool, and playing with his baby daughter, who was 7 months old at the time.

Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz, the two other Bristol, Conn., men charged with murder in Lloyd's slaying, also were at Hernandez's home that day. Prosecutors say the two associates stayed the night there after the shooting before driving back to Hernandez's relatives' home in Bristol, Conn., the next day.

McCauley on Thursday played nearly two hours of surveillance footage from the afternoon of June 17. The state's case against Hernandez rests heavily on an accusation that he displayed "consciousness of guilt" in the aftermath of Lloyd's shooting. Defense lawyers have claimed that "mere presence" is not enough for conviction, and prosecutors used the video Thursday to establish that Hernandez did not exhibit concern or contact authorities following the shooting.

About 1 p.m., Wallace was asleep on the couch in the basement. A shirtless Hernandez trotted down, with his baby in his arms, and awoke Wallace. The burly 42-year-old stood up and stretched.

The next hour, the men are seen in the backyard, enjoying the afternoon sun. Hernandez skipped an 11 a.m. meeting that day with a personal trainer who was going to help condition him for the upcoming football season. The former Patriots tight end instead spent the day wading in the backyard pool of his $1.3 million mansion.

Driveway surveillance from the late afternoon shows the three men leaving the home in a rented Nissan Altima that Hernandez had been driving the night before. They returned in the early evening in a car identified Thursday as a Chrysler, which Hernandez had rented when he returned the Nissan. Shortly after, Wallace and Ortiz drove away from the home in the new car.

Prosecutors have called more than 100 witnesses to testify at the murder trial, which is expected to last for at least another month.